Indian Railways has clarified that passengers must produce only the original digital ticket booked through the RailOne app or other authorised digital platforms during travel. Screenshots, photographs, PDF copies, or tickets forwarded through WhatsApp or any other messaging application will no longer be accepted as valid proof of travel.
The Railways has also made it mandatory for the digital ticket to be available on the same mobile phone that was used to book it. In addition, passengers travelling with unreserved digital tickets must purchase them before the train departs. Any ticket booked after the train has started its journey will be treated as invalid.
The South East Central Railway shared these guidelines through its official X (formerly Twitter) account, advising passengers to carry both the original booking mobile phone and a valid government-issued photo identity card during their journey. The clarification follows a recent incident in which a passenger was fined for presenting only a WhatsApp screenshot instead of the original digital ticket.
